


I'd Still Choose You

by pomme (manta)



Category: Fire Emblem Heroes
Genre: F/M, Implied/Referenced Character Death, implied roy/lilina, the t rating is for the referenced char death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-10
Updated: 2017-07-10
Packaged: 2018-11-30 09:51:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11461116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/manta/pseuds/pomme
Summary: On the mending that comes with graceless reunions.





	I'd Still Choose You

**Author's Note:**

> title is a line from "poison and wine" by the civil wars. the theme isn't relevant, but the "if i had a choice/i would still choose you" definitely is.
> 
> this is my first fe fic. scary, but exciting! fe heroes has introduced me to the feels fest that is eliwood and ninian and i love them help
> 
> special thanks to meg, for the fun HCing sessions and her support and looking this over for me and just being meg in general <3

 

_The leaves in Pherae turn golden this time of year, filling the roadsides in blinding flurries that can be seen from a distance._

_Eliwood can't think of a better way to expend a child's endless energy than bringing him to his first leaf pile. Roy is fascinated, flinging the leaves in the air and laughing when the wind picks them back up again._

_"Will there be leaf piles to play with at the harvest festival, Father?" he asks, plopping on the ground and throwing more leaves skyward._

_"If the tradition is followed, then yes. There’s a large meadow set aside, just to let people play in the leaf piles. Lord Hector and I used to go every year."_

_"Lilina can come with us?"_

_"Of course."_

_"She said something about leaves being like voices." Roy tosses more leaves, thoughtfully this time. "If there are enough to make a big noise, you can hear people from the past. ‘Maybe I’ll hear Mother again,’ she said.”_

_“Roy,” Eliwood cautions, knowing where this is going._

_But Roy asks it anyway, leaning forward to rake a large pile of leaves into his arms. “So if I gather enough of them, will I hear Mother, too?”_

_“I—” Eliwood hesitates, and tries again. Roy is watching with undivided attention, his hair mussed by the wind and leaves stacked up to his torso._

_"Well, it’s not so much about the noise," Eliwood says. "if the world is at peace and my heart is quiet, I can hear your mother's voice in the wind."_

 

* * *

 

"Ah."

Ninian's first word upon awakening is a sound of comprehension.

The gust that summoned her blasts a smaller second ripple, like an afterthought that whips through the tall grass. With the breeze comes the intoxicating smell of wildflowers and crisp mornings. Ninian breathes it all in.

She opens her eyes to find the Summoner staring, torn between shock and disbelief.

"Gods, it's Lady Ninian! What an honor this is! Uh—" The Summoner wildly glances around—first at her cloak, flung onto a branch, then at her boots, tossed to one side—all the while attempting to retie her unruly ponytail. "Please excuse my inappropriate attire! Summoning is rather tiring work—”

Her expression is so frantic that Ninian bites back the urge to laugh. "I apologize for my sudden appearance."

"No, it's fine! I mean, it's more than fine—it's a pleasure! _I_ should be sorry for being so unprepared," the Summoner stammers. And then, muttering to herself: "You _fool._ Yes, this is her banner, but she's a _five star focus_ and I didn't expect—of all the odds—gods, I didn't think to bring a horse! But I can't make the Lady Ninian _walk_. Perhaps she'll accept a piggyback ride?"

"I think you'll find," Ninian gently interjects, "that I enjoy long strolls. I'll gladly walk beside you, Summoner."

 

* * *

 

When they enter the great stone walls of Askr Castle, the Summoner stretches. "Well, I'll be taking my leave. Anna, Alfonse, and Sharena will want to meet you. Wait here!"

"I—what?" Ninian did not expect to be left on her own so soon. "No, please wait—"

But the Summoner has vanished. Ninian glances around, fidgeting, but the sound of running footsteps indicate she won't be alone in the entrance hall for much longer. The doors burst open a moment later.

"Hurry, Lilina! Keep up!" A young man laughs and calls back to his companion. "Last one to the owl statue is a—"

He skids to a halt, his wide eyes meeting Ninian's. Her heart skips a beat; she does not need to ask who he is.

"Roy, I'm trying! You know I can't run as fast as you—oof!" Lilina barrels into Roy, nearly sending them both flying onto the carpet. She recovers almost immediately, hands on her hips and wearing a put out expression. "What's the matter? Why did you sto—" Roy is still staring, and Lilina is quick to follow his gaze. " _Oh._ "

"How splendid you've both become, Roy, Lilina," Ninian says, smiling in spite of her nerves. She hides her trembling hands behind her back.

"Lady Ninian!" Lilina drops a curtsy, and rises with her eyes oddly bright. When Roy doesn't speak, she places her hand in the center of his back and nudges him forward. “Say something,” she urges him.

Roy blinks. "Oh. Um. Yes. My apologies! I was surprised, to say the least." But then he smiles back; encouraged, Ninian tentatively extends a hand, which Roy takes with both of his own. "It's wonderful to see you again, M—Mother."

The last word catches on his tongue, clumsy from disuse, and Ninian is overcome with fondness.

A loud sniff, and Lilina’s gone.

"We have a lot to talk about, don't we?" Ninian finally manages."Your adventures, and mine. The sword at your side has seen some good use, I'm sure."

Roy nods, standing straighter, and Ninian bites her lip. Prowess on the battlefield is not where she envisioned her son, whether those visions were when she was lucid, conscious, delirious, or dying. But she inhales, and with the exhale, she banishes what preconceived wishes she had for him.

"Mother?" Roy says again. He's almost shy, most unlike the young man Ninian watched charging through the doors, the spitting image of his father.

She squeezes his hand. "Yes, Roy?"

Roy ducks his head; Ninian recalls a little boy, crouched at her bedside. "I should like to see you dance," he mumbles. "Father and Lord Hector told me about your dances, and I've always wanted..."

Ninian's heart fills to the brim for reasons she can't explain. She has been told by the noblewomen that smiling until one's cheeks hurt is unladylike. Crying, too, is most unladylike. But right now, she doesn’t care.

"A dance you shall have," she promises Roy, "with many more to come."

 

* * *

 

This is how a frantic and displeased Eliwood finds them: mother and son, swaying in gentle circles, she humming a song from long ago, he clumsily joining in when he recognizes a melody or two.

In the dying light, Eliwood only recognizes Roy's back and the silhouette of a woman.

"What is the meaning of this, Roy?" he demands.

"Father—" Roy attempts to explain, but Eliwood continues.

"I met Lilina at the stables, tear stained and puffy-eyed. She started crying again as soon as she saw me, to the point she couldn't speak. And here you are, dancing with another woman—"

" _Father_ —" Roy tries again.

"I made a point of telling the Summoner I would return late to attend to important matters. She still sends Eirika to drag me back with no explanation other than to go to the entrance hall, and this was the reason? For a father to reprimand his son?"

"Father!"

"I must confess, I am vexed. I thought you understood you should not make a woman cry; this is most unbecoming of you. What would your mother have to say?"

"His mother is very proud of him," Ninian manages to cut in at last, stepping into the light of a torch to illuminate her face. "As she is of you."

Eliwood gasps.

"My deepest apologies," he has the presence of mind to say to Roy. "I... see what was so urgent. Or rather, who."

"That's quite all right, Father," Roy says with aplomb, and turns to Ninian. "Mother, I should tell Lilina what happened. I'll find you again later."

"I would like that," Ninian answers. She and Roy exchange smiles, all the while aware that Eliwood is watching her.

"I'm sorry," Eliwood says after Roy departs. "I should have heard what he had to say first."

Ninian considers the pertinence of mentioning that they, as they are now, are hardly at an age to call themselves parents. But Eliwood did always try to shoulder everything himself. "You did what you thought was best."

"I still have much to learn about being a father."

That he had to make these choices alone makes her bridge the distance, to take him in her arms. "I would be honored if you danced with me, Lord Eliwood."

As she hopes, his eyes immediately flick back to her face, his guilt temporarily subdued as his arm encircles her waist. "The honor is mine. But just Eliwood. Please."

Eliwood is not a natural dancer; his hands are calloused from handling a sword, his steps quick but not lithe. And yet he moves, light as air, his face free of the lines etched into Ninian's memory—the deep grooves that became him near the end, when she lost her ability to speak and endured the pain in silence.

She hums at first, the same songs she hummed to Roy. But as the sky darkens, she eventually quiets and lapses into silence, and Eliwood breaks it.

"You move as enchantingly as I remember," he murmurs in quiet wonder. "Your dances will lift everyone's spirits, as they have mine."

"I will be glad to help," Ninian answers. "But even in a place as beautiful as this, there is still war." She can't keep the note of sadness out of her voice, and Eliwood's grip around her tightens.

"Even so... when I was first summoned, I wondered if you might join me here someday. The chances were slim, but I always hoped..."

Ninian focuses on where he is touching her: warm, safe, near. "The gods granted our wish to stay together."

"I believed our time would be brief, but they have indeed been kind. Ninian..." He brings them to a halt, presses his forehead to hers. "Ninian, I have much to tell you. Much has happened since we parted, and I've missed you so dearly, so deeply—"

"Yes," she murmurs, removing her hand from his shoulder to rest it against his face. He closes his eyes, leaning into her touch, and her already aching heart overflows.

 

* * *

 

Jakob rings for dinner once, then twice, then a third time. By now, night has completely fallen, with torches intermittently placed to light the way.

Most people have already made their way into the dining hall. Most, that is, save for the small but noisy huddle near the entrance hall.

"You promised we could meet her!" Anna hisses loudly.

"Now's not a good time!" the Summoner hisses back, just as loudly.

Alfonse is the first one to actually peer into the entrance hall, and he immediately withdraws. "Let them have a moment, Anna."

"They're having a moment?" The Summoner is immediately distracted.

"What are they doing?" Anna asks at the same time.

"Move, Alfonse! Let me see!" Sharena demands. When her brother refuses to budge, she pokes him in the ribs.

"Ow! Sharena, stop it!"

"You were the nosy one who looked. Let the rest of us take a peek!"

Behind them, Roy clears his throat, and the four of them jump. "With all due respect, weary heroes who spend a long day in battle should use their evenings to rejuvenate with a hot meal. Don't you agree?" And he chivvies them away toward the dining hall.

 

 

If they had stayed behind, they would have seen two figures, still dancing in the shadow of the first flock of stars.

 

**Author's Note:**

> confession: i still haven't summoned roy  
> PLEASE COME HOME


End file.
